Born in 1988, Marcelo Vieira began his career playing five-a-side football for Fluminense. However, he almost came close to quitting the sport altogether since he was unable to pay for bus fees but was dissuaded after grandfather, teammates and club delegates chipped in.
Following great showings in Rio de Janeiro, Real Madrid caught wind of the 18-year-old and signed him during the mid-season transfer window to freshen up an ageing squad with younger faces.
But Marcelo’s talent would truly be appreciated with the coming Mourinho era. The Portuguese manager brought the former futsal player back to his orthodox left-back position and started him in all La Liga games including many Champions League fixtures. Marcelo soon netted his first-ever goal in the latter competition against traditionally difficult European opponents Lyon.
His overall performances earned much acclaim from across the football world with icons such as Paolo Maldini, Diego Maradona and arguably greatest left-back Roberto Carlos lauding the Brazilian’s versatility in offense and defense.
Other sports stars celebrating their date of birth:
1970: Mark Foster, former swimmer who represented Great Britain in the Olympics and world championships winning various medals, notably freestyle and butterfly stroke. (46)
1979: Steve Smith, American football player who plays for the Baltimore Ravens and is considered to be one of the NFL’s most productive wide receivers in the last 20 years with an impressive tally of catches, receiving yards and touchdowns. (36)
1992: Erik Durm, German left back who features for Borussia Dortmund. He made his senior debut in the national team during the World Cup campaign in Brazil which his country ended up winning in 2014. (23)
